Economic evaluation of six immune checkpoint inhibitor-based first-line therapies for advanced squamous non-small-cell lung cancer: a cost-effectiveness analysis based on network meta-analysis
- 1Department of Radiation Oncology, The Quzhou Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Quzhou People’s Hospital
- 2Department of Radiation Oncology, Zhuji Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University
- 3Department of Medical Oncology, Zhuji Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University
Abstract
Background: Advanced squamous non-small-cell lung cancer (sq-NSCLC) imposes a substantial clinical and economic burden. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (sugemalimab, tislelizumab, penpulimab, serplulimab, camrelizumab, and pembrolizumab) combined with chemotherapy improve survival, but their comparative cost-effectiveness remains uncertain.
Methods: A three-state partitioned survival model with 3-week cycles and a lifetime horizon was developed from the Chinese healthcare-system perspective. Clinical efficacy was derived from six phase 3 trials and synthesized using network meta-analysis. Costs, life-years (LYs), quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) for each ICI-based regimen versus chemotherapy were estimated. The willingness‐to‐pay (WTP) threshold was set at $27,906/QALY. Deterministic, probabilistic, scenario, and full incremental analyses were performed.
Results: In the base-case analysis, chemotherapy alone yielded 0.71 QALYs at $12,227.47. All ICI-based regimens increased QALYs to between 1.24 and 2.07. Pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy provided the greatest health benefit, yielding 2.07 QALYs, but had an ICER of $70,913.04 per QALY versus chemotherapy alone. Penpulimab plus chemotherapy had the lowest ICER versus chemotherapy alone ($13,064.23 per QALY), followed by camrelizumab ($13,361.50/QALY), and tislelizumab plus chemotherapy ($14,022.95/QALY), all below the WTP threshold. Sugemalimab plus chemotherapy and serplulimab plus chemotherapy exceeded the threshold. Probabilistic sensitivity analysis indicated that camrelizumab plus chemotherapy had the highest probability of being cost-effective (95%) at $27,906/QALY. In the full incremental analysis, the efficiency frontier comprised chemotherapy alone, penpulimab plus chemotherapy, camrelizumab plus chemotherapy, and pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy; camrelizumab plus chemotherapy was the preferred strategy after dominated options were excluded.
Conclusion: At the selected WTP threshold, camrelizumab plus chemotherapy may be the preferred first-line strategy after strictly and extendedly dominated alternatives were excluded. This finding depends on the indirect comparisons, chemotherapy baseline, drug prices, survival extrapolation, and post-progression assumptions.
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BibTeX
@article{qiu2026economic,
title = {{Economic evaluation of six immune checkpoint inhibitor-based first-line therapies for advanced squamous non-small-cell lung cancer: a cost-effectiveness analysis based on network meta-analysis}},
author = {Zijian Qiu and Guodong Wang and Ying Lou and Feng Xuan},
journal = {Frontiers in Pharmacology},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fphar.2026.1841871},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphar.2026.1841871/full},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Economic evaluation of six immune checkpoint inhibitor-based first-line therapies for advanced squamous non-small-cell lung cancer: a cost-effectiveness analysis based on network meta-analysis
AU - Zijian Qiu
AU - Guodong Wang
AU - Ying Lou
AU - Feng Xuan
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/13
JO - Frontiers in Pharmacology
DO - 10.3389/fphar.2026.1841871
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphar.2026.1841871/full
AB - Background: Advanced squamous non-small-cell lung cancer (sq-NSCLC) imposes a substantial clinical and economic burden. Immune checkpoint inhibitors (sugemalimab, tislelizumab, penpulimab, serplulimab, camrelizumab, and pembrolizumab) combined with chemotherapy improve survival, but their comparative cost-effectiveness remains uncertain. Methods: A three-state partitioned survival model with 3-week cycles and a lifetime horizon was developed from the Chinese healthcare-system perspective. Clinical efficacy was derived from six phase 3 trials and synthesized using network meta-analysis. Costs, life-years (LYs), quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs), and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) for each ICI-based regimen versus chemotherapy were estimated. The willingness‐to‐pay (WTP) threshold was set at $27,906/QALY. Deterministic, probabilistic, scenario, and full incremental analyses were performed. Results: In the base-case analysis, chemotherapy alone yielded 0.71 QALYs at $12,227.47. All ICI-based regimens increased QALYs to between 1.24 and 2.07. Pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy provided the greatest health benefit, yielding 2.07 QALYs, but had an ICER of $70,913.04 per QALY versus chemotherapy alone. Penpulimab plus chemotherapy had the lowest ICER versus chemotherapy alone ($13,064.23 per QALY), followed by camrelizumab ($13,361.50/QALY), and tislelizumab plus chemotherapy ($14,022.95/QALY), all below the WTP threshold. Sugemalimab plus chemotherapy and serplulimab plus chemotherapy exceeded the threshold. Probabilistic sensitivity analysis indicated that camrelizumab plus chemotherapy had the highest probability of being cost-effective (95%) at $27,906/QALY. In the full incremental analysis, the efficiency frontier comprised chemotherapy alone, penpulimab plus chemotherapy, camrelizumab plus chemotherapy, and pembrolizumab plus chemotherapy; camrelizumab plus chemotherapy was the preferred strategy after dominated options were excluded. Conclusion: At the selected WTP threshold, camrelizumab plus chemotherapy may be the preferred first-line strategy after strictly and extendedly dominated alternatives were excluded. This finding depends on the indirect comparisons, chemotherapy baseline, drug prices, survival extrapolation, and post-progression assumptions.
SN - 1663-9812
ER -